A Fife family are mourning their teenage daughter who was “full of life” weeks before being struck down by an aggressive cancer on Hogmanay
Shelley Petrie (16) passed away peacefully at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh, having been diagnosed with cancer of the lungs and lymph glands just two weeks earlier.
Her heartbroken parents Sandra Ballingall (50) and Brian Petrie (45), of Glenrothes, paid tribute to their “fun” and “loving” daughter.
And the couple believe they could have had more time with their daughter if she had received treatment for the cancer sooner. They called for doctors to carry out more diagnostic tests before sending patients home with a prescription.
Miss Ballingall said, “We can’t believe it. Six weeks ago she was running about with her friends and looking forward to Christmas.
“On November 21 she complained about a sore throat, nasty cough and back pain. We took her to the doctors on November 24 and they put it down to a viral infection and said come back in a fortnight.
“A week into that we called NHS 24. Her neck had doubled in size. We took her up to Glenrothes Hospital and when they saw her she was sent straight up to Victoria Hospital.”
Medics at Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy took a biopsy of one of Shelley’s lymph glands. The following Monday, December 13, she was taken to the Sick Kids where they put her through more tests.
On the Wednesday, doctors diagnosed Shelley’s cancer.
Miss Ballingall said, “I don’t want any other parents to go through this.
“Doctors do make mistakes and they did this time. They were too quick to send her away with a prescription. If they had sent her for an X-ray, they could have picked it up and our daughter could have got radiotherapy. It might have given her a wee bit longer.”Hospital staff ‘excellent’She added, “If they’re not sure what something is, they should send them straight to the hospital.”
The tragic teenager leaves behind brothers Alexander (27) and “wee” Brian (12).
Miss Ballingall said that Shelley’s boyfriend had been “floored” by her sudden death and her classmates at Auchmuty High School were devastated.
Shelley was a member of the Girls’ Brigade at Glenrothes Baptist Church and was a Raith Rovers fan. Her ambition was to become a nurse.
“She wanted to be a nurse for sick children. She had wanted to be a nurse since she was four years old,” Miss Ballingall said.
“She always wanted to care for people. She was bright, fun and loving, and had an excellent sense of humour.”
She added, “Staff at Victoria Hospital were excellent and staff at the Sick Kids were excellent. They did everything for us. I just wish they could have done more, but they could not have done any more.”
Mr Petrie said, “After she passed away, the doctor said he had never, in 21 years, seen a cancer so aggressive.”
It was the second time in six months the family had been struck by cancer. Miss Ballingall lost her mother to lung cancer in June.